A narrow canal
As I mentioned earlier, the Llangollen Canal all the way to Ellesmere is almost lock free, which makes it a good choice for a beginner crew, but it is also a very narrow canal. Not only does the canal narrow under bridges, but there are several sections of the canal close to town where boats must take turns to go through. If possible, send someone ahead with a phone or radio (cellular reception is spotty) to scout ahead. In addition, there are several blind corners caused by buildings along the towpath or cliffs on the northern bank.
During the height of the season, it’s not a bad idea to moor to the east of the winding hole near Bryn Howell Bridge 38. Admittedly that’s about a 5-mile walk into town (or a relatively short bike ride). If you travel west of the winding hole, you won’t be able to turn around until you reach the marina just past Llangollen Wharf.
Because the canal is so narrow, be prepared for some confusion and commotion. You’ll hear boat skippers shouting at crewmembers who have gone ahead on the towpath to scout out the traffic or well-meaning gongoozlers trying to direct traffic. As night approaches you’ll see boaters with anxious faces hoping there’s still a berth near town—and you might be one of them.
WhiteWater Active in Llangollen rents bike by the day, as does Hire Cycles 2 Go, although the latter will also rent bikes by the week. Both services will deliver bikes to you and WhiteWater Active also offers rafting and climbing adventures.
But it’s all worth it. I can’t adequately tell you how pretty the canal is along the valley. Because the canal is higher than the valley, you’ll often have spectacular views of the Dee but in other spots, with the cliffs on the north side and the canopy of trees, you’ll feel like you’re in some lost world. We call these Heart of Darkness sections from Joseph Conrad’s book about traveling on the Congo searching for the elusive Kurtz, but they only last a few minutes before you see a field with grazing sheep to destroy the illusion.
Trevor Basin
Although Trevor is only four miles from Llangollen, it might take two or more hours to get there because of the traffic or because you must stop to take pictures. If you need to do anything in Trevor (like visit the giant Tesco there), I’d suggest mooring somewhere between bridges 34 and 33 and then walking into town. You can theoretically moor in Trevor Basin, but because AngloWelsh boat hire and Jones the Boat day trips are based here, you might want to avoid mooring there. There is a visitor center for the aqueduct, The Telford Inn and very nice public restrooms in the basin, however, that you may want to visit, which is why I suggest mooring elsewhere and walking to the basin.
The double L sound in Welsh is difficult to pronounce. The name of the town and canal is more or less pronounced lan-GOTH-en, while the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct is variously pronounced. The most basic way to pronounce it is PONT-ker-suck-tay, but more correct would be PONT-kuh-suth-teh. Actually, there’s another syllable somewhere between the “suth” and the “teh” but I think you need to be Welsh to manage it convincingly.